Special Forces: A Guided Tour of U.S. Army Special Forces

by Tom Clancy

  Though the group retains its European focus, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact has removed Colonel Bank’s original reason for creating the 10th. Yet in its place has come a far more challenging set of problems. The group is forward deployed and fully engaged, second only to the 5th SFG for its OpTempo and number of real-world contingency operations. They are fully involved in the effort to expand NATO, and in the peacekeeping efforts in the Balkans. They are also working hard to bring professionalism and a respect for democracy to the militaries of the former communist nations of Europe.

  The 10th SFG has been given some relief from their busy pace by the recent redrawing of regional boundary lines. In 1998, they gave up responsibility for the Stans and North Africa, retaining only Israel, Lebanon, and Turkey in the Middle East. Nevertheless, they still retain responsibility for SF operations in Eastern Europe, including Russia, most of the old Soviet Union, and all the former Warsaw Pact nations.

  Because of the need for a quick response capability,66 the 10th SFG still maintains their 1st Battalion forward based in Germany. The 2nd and 3rd Battalions are based back at Fort Carson.

  Here is a look at some of what they’re up to:• Contingencies—Unless you have been on the dark side of the moon, you probably already know what kinds of contingency operations are at the core of the 10th SFG’s missions. Key are those in the Balkans, the Middle East, and Russia. Operations like Allied Force, Deliberate Force, and the various Balkan relief efforts have been key examples of quick responses by the 10th SFG.

  • Operations—Most of the 10th SFG’s ongoing operations in recent years have supported Balkan operations. The biggest have been peacekeeping and demining support for Operations Joint Forge in Bosnia, and Joint Guardian and Noble Anvil in Kosovo.

  • JCS Exercises—In 1999, 10th SFG was heavily involved in JCS exercises, including more than two dozen JCETs, mobile training teams (MTTs) sent to the Baltic states, counterdrug, and demining operations.

  • CONUS Training—Recent years have seen a heavy level of CONUS training operations for the 10th SFG, including exercises to help qualify former Warsaw Pact nations for NATO membership. The 10th also has a heavy schedule of refresher and requalification training, especially for mountain and cold-weather operations.

  The official shoulder flash (emblem) of the 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne)

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  19th Special Forces Group (Army National Guard)

  In addition to the five active-duty SFGs, there are two Army National Guard (ANG) SFGs under SFC. These units are staffed by former active-duty SF personnel, can be tasked with the same kinds of missions, and are composed of a mixed group of ANG formations from dozens of states. These are, in other words, not just weekend warriors, but highly skilled SF professionals who just happen to have other jobs during the week.

  This is not a novelty for Special Forces. Long before the development of the “Total Force” concept of operations,67 the Special Forces had formed and operated nonactive duty SF units. During the 1950s, the 77th SFG provided personnel and assistance to reserve and ANG operational detachments in North Carolina, New Jersey, Illinois, and a number of Western states. By 1960 the first Army Reserve group, the 11th SFG, was formed in Boston, Massachusetts. Eventually, a total of nine AR and ANG SFGs were formed, though all but two have since been inactivated.

  According to the SFC leadership, their two ANG groups are the best bargains in the whole command. On the one hand, personnel costs are extremely low, since the soldiers are only paid for monthly weekend duty and their yearly two-week active-duty tour. On the other hand, a number of highly experienced senior SF soldiers are not lost to the organization. In fact, the ANG groups allow these men to have the best of both worlds—a useful career after their active-duty SF tour and the opportunity to take part in very challenging missions and operations.

  Naturally, it would be unrealistic to expect part-time soldiers to maintain the physical condition and combat skills of active-duty SF troopers. While they do a credible job of keeping in shape, the ANG personnel are not expected to be fearsome in combat but to use their greater experience and skills base. Thus, SFC tends to task the ANG groups with the less intense missions, such as JCETs and other training-oriented operations.

  But don’t think they can’t fight. They are smart and very qualified soldiers, and are well respected by their active-duty counterparts. A few weeks back on operations will reveal few differences between active-duty and ANG SF soldiers.

  The 19th SFG is headquartered in Draper, Utah (near Salt Lake City), in a large office building, and it is commanded by Colonel Jordan Hughes and his CSM, Owen Quarnberg. Like the active-duty groups, they have a spiritual lineage that traces back to the Devil’s Brigade, in their case, the 1st Company of the 1st Battalion, 3rd Regiment.

  The 19th is structured exactly like the active-duty groups, with the only difference being that the component units are scattered across the country. Its units are spread throughout seven states—California, Washington, Utah, Colorado, Ohio, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. These units are normally housed at ANG posts and armories. Since these are owned and operated by the governments of their home states, unit costs are spread across a wider base of public finance. It further means that in the event of a natural disaster or state emergency, the units are available to support relief operations.

  When it comes to mission tasking, there are a few general rules for the ANG SFGs. First, while they are fully capable of combat and other contingency operations, ANG units are mainly used to backfill less difficult or arduous missions. This has the effect of enabling an active-duty SF unit to go somewhere that’s more critical or timely.

  The 19th has a broad geographic focus. Thus its overseas operations are conducted in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the Far East. The 19th SFG’s recent tasking is shown below:• Contingencies—Though the 19th SFG is not generally involved with standing contingency operations, this may change in the future. ANG SF units may soon take on full-time counterdrug, counterterrorism, and counterWMD missions. (This could be done practically in two ways: First, presidential orders could activate the units. Or, various ANG ODAs could hand a duty off from one team to another.)

  • Operations—As stated above, the 19th SFG has no responsibility for standing operations.

  • JCS Exercises—Here the ANG SFGs earn their keep. They take over missions that normally would require the services of an active-duty SF unit. In 1999, the 19th ran missions to Kenya, Jordan, and Oman, with one or two ODAs teaching reconnaissance, patrol, and strike skills. The 19th also ran several command post exercises in South Korea, with company-sized deployments downrange. Their largest series of missions were a series of JCETs in support of the 1st SFG in Asia. These included almost a dozen ODA-sized missions to Micronesia, Papua New Guinea, South Korea, the Java Barrier, and the Maldives. There the 19th taught a variety of skills to local military and police units, ranging from medical lifesaving to sniping.

  • CONUS Training—The 19th ran a full array of Stateside refresher training in 1999, including MFF, UWO, and various specialty requalifications.

  The official shoulder flash (emblem) of the 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne)

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  20th Special Forces Group (Army National Guard)

  Headed by Colonel James Yarbrough and CSM Joe Riley, the 20th SFG is based in eight eastern states (Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Kentucky, Virginia, Maryland, Illinois, and Massachussetts), and headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. Their spiritual roots in the Devil’s Brigade go back to the 2nd Company of the 1st Battalion, 3rd Regiment.

  The 20th SFG has a primary Latin American-Caribbean mission focus, being tasked mainly by SOCSOUTH. This makes them a useful augment to the 7th SFG. In 1999, their jobs included:• Contingencies—Like the 7th and 19th SFGs, the 20th SFG has no serious potential contingencies to deal with. While they do have the capability to support crisis situa
tions, it is likely they will continue to support mainly JCS and CONUS training missions.

  • Operations—The 20th has no ongoing operations, though they have had to deal with some natural disaster relief (Hurricane Mitch, etc.) in 1998 and 1999.

  • JCS Exercises— In 1998 and 1999, the 20th had a busy schedule of JCS exercises, particularly JCETs. They ran two small exercises in Guyana and Panama, and over twenty JCETs. These included JCETs to Honduras, El Salvador, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Suriname, Panama, Trinidad, Venezuela, Barbados, Antigua, and Puerto Rico. These operations covered a variety of mission skills, including humanitarian assistance, combat search and rescue, counterdrug and countermine training, and peacekeeping.

  • CONUS Training— Like the 19th, the 20th SFG ran a full array of Stateside refresher training in 1999, including MFF, UWO, and various specialty requalifications.

  The two ANG groups are an important augment to the five active-duty SFGs. In fact, it would surely be wise to activate additional ANG groups to support SF missions to more permissive environments, reserving the high-end operations for the active-duty groups. Given their high OpTempos, this may well happen soon.

  Other SFC Units

  SFC is also responsible for four chemical reconnaissance detachments (CRDs). Two of these, the 56th and 801st CRDs are active-duty units based at Fort Campbell and Fort Bragg respectively. There are also two U.S. Army Reserve CRDs, the 445th and 900th at Fort Meade, Maryland, and Fort Carson, Colorado, These are small, specialized detachments with special training and equipment whose function is to detect, map, and assess threats and actual usage of chemical weapons for SOF commanders; and they are the only Army units qualified to provide chemical warfare services in the SOF arena.

  Supporting Units

  SFC are limited in their abilities to go places and do things without external help. Key among these necessary services are transportation resources, communications services, intelligence support, and weather data. Luckily, many of these services are available within USASOC and SOCOM, and are available for tasking by SF units.

  • 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR—the Nightstalkers)—The most secret and technologically advanced unit in USASOC, the Nightstalkers provide the rest of the command with the aviation support that was lacking during the Iranian hostage rescue in 1980. Based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, the 160th flies a mix of helicopters, all heavily modified and specialized. These include:—MH-47D/E Chinook—The long-range, heavy-lift component of the 160th, the MH-47 is a heavily modified variant of the Army’s famous twin-engine/rotor Boeing Chinook helicopter. Equipped with a specially engineered mission equipment package—terrain following radar (TFR), forward-looking infrared (FLIR) scanner, electronics countermeasures (ECM), an in-flight refueling probe, etc.—and computer system, the MH-47 is able to accomplish the kinds of nonstop missions that were impossible in Iran back in 1980. A single MH-47 can carry up to twenty fully equipped special operations personnel or a rubber boat with a dozen men.

  An MH-47 transport helicopter from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment kicks up dust and debris as it lands. The 160th provides the Army Special Operations community with its own airborne insertion capability.

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  —MH-60K/L Pave Hawk—Based on the familiar UH-60 Blackhawk, the MH- 60 is the little brother to the MH-47 Chinook. Equipped with a similar mission equipment package, the Pave Hawk is designed to conduct similar missions of shorter duration and with smaller payloads. The MH-60K model is, however, equipped with an in-flight refueling probe, so that longer missions can be flown, as well as air-to-ground rockets and machine guns. There are also unconfirmed reports of an attack version of the MH-60K, known as the AH-60, which reportedly has a laser designator, in addition to the normal mission equipment package, and a pair of 30mm chain guns. This gives it firepower similar to that of the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, which includes both Hellfire and Stinger missiles for attacking ground and air targets respectively.

  —A/M/TH-6 “Little Bird”—The most secret of the 160th’s livery, the Little Bird is actually a family of light attack, assault, and surveillance helicopters based upon the familiar H-6/MD-500-series helicopter now built by Boeing (formerly McDonnell Douglas and Hughes). Though many of the details surrounding these birds are highly classified, most are equipped with a lightweight FLIR system, and can be armed with 7.62mm six-barreled miniguns and air-to-ground rockets. The Little Bird can also be used as an urban assault transport helicopter, equipped to “fast rope” as many as six special operations personnel into built-up environments like cities and industrial zones.The Nightstalkers specialize in night operations, where their advantages in sensors, navigational equipment, weapons, and crew skills can translate into a significant edge in combat. They have seen their share of action since they were formed in the early 1980s, and have become one of the busiest units in the U.S. military. If they have a shortcoming, it is their small numbers and their need for infrastructure and support (basing, logistics, etc.), which can limit their usefulness in expeditionary environments.

  Air Force Special Operations (AFSOC)

  Along with the 160th SOAR, SOCOM also maintains a significant SOF transport capability within the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) at Hurlbert Field, Florida. These include specially equipped MC-130 Hercules turboprop transports, with a package of satellite communications and navigation systems. The 130s can be used for both airborne and air delivery operations for SOF units. There is also a squadron of C-141B Starlifter heavy-lift transports, which are capable of similar services.68 Heavy fire support can also be provided by the AFSOC force of AC-130 Spectre gunships. These can deliver pinpoint fire from 105mm, 25mm, 20mm, and 7.62mm cannon and machine guns in almost any weather or visibility. Finally, AFSOC also maintains a small fleet of special operations helicopters—MH-53J Pave Lows. The Pave Lows are heavily armed, and equipped to operate in almost any weather, visibility, or air defense environment and are currently the world’s most capable SOF transport aircraft.

  In just a few years, AFSOC will take delivery of an SOF version of the new V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor transport aircraft. The Osprey will replace the Pave Lows and some of the MC-130s, providing a vast improvement in range, payload, and other capabilities.

  The Navy: Subs and Special Boats

  The Special Forces also retain a significant capability for maritime and riverine insertion into denied areas (that is, areas occupied by people who don’t want them there). SF units have long had the ability to operate rubber boats, and they can deploy these from a variety of platforms. Thus, the Navy can be tasked to provide transport services in the form of SOF-capable submarines and boats. To this end, the Navy has designated two former nuclear ballistic missile submarines, the Kamehameha (SSN- 642) and James K. Polk (SSN-645), as well as the Special Operations boat, Parche (SSN-683). (Parche and the now-retired Richard Russell were based upon long-hulled Sturgeon (SSN-637)-class attack boats, and there appear to be plans to make the Jimmy Carter (SSN-23) the replacement for Parche.) These boats have lock-out chambers for divers, as well as external hangers for powered delivery vehicles or rubber boats. The Navy can also be tasked for a loan from one of their special boat squadrons. The Special Forces especially like the new Cyclone (PC-1)-class boats, since they can carry several ODAs and their gear into water as shallow as small rivers. The Navy also operates smaller craft, including the new Mark V-series boats, which can move upriver into creeks and streams, or make high-speed movements through coastal waters.

  75th Ranger Regiment

  Though the Special Forces have an impressive ability to conduct small-unit operations against specific targets, sometimes you need to attack, capture, or wreck something really BIG! When this need comes up, SOCOM calls the 75th Ranger Regiment at Fort Benning, Georgia. Composed of three Ranger battalions (two at Fort Benning and one at Fort Lewis), the 75th provides the national command authorities with a quick-reaction force that is airborne qua
lified, and large enough to handle a variety of tasks. This includes missions like airfield assaults and takeovers (as was done in Grenada and Panama) and large-scale urban combat (in Somalia).

  The 75th has a fearsome combat reputation, which is in line with their traditions going back to World War II. The Rangers are America’s own reverse fire brigade. That is, they scare their opponents like a maniac with a flame thrower.

  I try not to get them mad.

  U.S. Space Command (SPACECOM)

  No external service is more important to SF units than the U.S. Space Command. Based at Peterson AFB near Colorado Springs, Colorado, SPACECOM is the clearinghouse for satellite communications services, as well as weather and intelligence data—all vital to any SF mission. SPACECOM keeps these necessary services available and reliable, making possible the wide range of SFC global missions.

  Roles and Missions: The Special Forces Way

  Now it’s time to get into what these folks do.

  SFC has carved out a special niche in the SOF world; there are well-established roles and missions that they call their own. While it goes without saying that no military unit can possibly do everything, the Special Forces can cover quite a lot. The key is knowing their limits.

  For example, instead of parachuting a whole battalion of SF soldiers onto an airfield in order to take it, better to use one or two ODAs to scout the place, and let a Ranger battalion do the job.